Compass Points - Generous Expectations
Difficult issues require open discussion
Compass Points - Generous Expectations
Difficult issues require open discussion
July 26, 2023
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Upon leaving their unit, every Marine should be thanked for their service. Perhaps that Marine was never the top Marine in the unit. Nevertheless, every Marine should be thanked and generously wished, "fair winds and following seas." In the same way, when a new Marine arrives at a unit, the Marine gets a fresh start. Have they made mistakes in the past? No matter. The new Marine is welcomed with open arms. It is a new day, a new unit, and a new start.
There are moments in life which require generous expectations. For example, anyone attending a wedding must convey generous expectations for the new couple. Even if the union appears unlikely and filled with problems, for that one day, it is important for everyone to expect the best, to be generous in their expectations.
It is the same for the birth of child, for graduation, or the first day at a new job. Wish them the best. Convey generous expectations.
With the recent exit of the Marine Corps' 38th Commandant, Compass Points will continue, as always, to speak up as an independent voice for a stronger Marine Corps. The Marine Corps is a work-in-progress. Open discussion, debate, and discourse help keep the Marine Corps always moving forward.
Keith Holcomb in his article for The National Interest, "How Marines Can Fight the Stifling of Independent Thought" observes,
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The nation is suffering from the loss of open, respectful, inclusive, and professional dialogue.
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Difficult issues for the Nation and for the Marine Corps require more discussion, deeper understanding, and more inclusive dialogue and discourse. Two sides throwing rocks at each other from a distance is not a good way to find new solutions. To find new solutions, the Marine Corps needs to encourage more Marines to speak up.
As Keith Holcomb advocates,
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The quality of a Marine’s thinking ought to matter more than rank or position. Yes, we should be respectful of seniors. But we should be respectful of all who care enough about an issue to try to express their thinking or lessons learned on a particular matter.
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Charles Krulak, writing in Military Times, suggests four principles to help the entire community of those who care about the Marine Corps -- active, reserve, and veteran -- to work together,
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-- We need to move from waging information campaigns against one another - after serious decisions about our Corps' future have been made - to a much more inclusive and transparent process before decisions are made.
-- We need to move from generalizations and straw man characterizations of contending views to serious, in-depth discussions about operational capabilities and the dependencies they have, discussions befitting professionals.
-- We need to clearly articulate a future end-state and the means by which we will get there to include, rigorously red-teamed transitions that minimize exploitable opportunities by this nation’s enemies each step of the way.
-- We need to return to a time when we “cast our nets widely” and think deeply and carefully about our own dynamic, complex adaptive system, and the many other dynamic complex systems with which we operate.
This is our Marine Corps, and we all have roles to play in helping it adapt to an increasingly complex future.
We must never denigrate or marginalize those who want to help shape its future. We must encourage, rather than suppress, different perspectives and life experiences. Open, inclusive stress-testing of hypotheses about our Corps make for both a stronger, more relevant Corps and a more cohesive and unified Corps.
Let’s revitalize “Gung Ho”— working together.
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Compass Points salutes the authors and all those working to help build a stronger Marine Corps.
The Marine Corps has a new Commandant -- or will soon have one, when he is officially confirmed. For the Marine Corps, it is a new day. Compass Points asks all readers to join in welcoming the new Commandant and conveying generous expectations. There will be a period of time yet until he is confirmed. Once confirmed, the work will begin. There is much that needs doing, as there always is, but Marines are strong and not afraid of a challenge. No doubt there are many challenges ahead, but for now, generous expectations.
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The National Interest (nationalinterest.org) 10/03/2022
How Marines Can Fight the Stifling of Independent Thought
Those entering the nation’s militaries and assuming positions of responsibility, like all citizens, are increasingly becoming products of these repressive intellectual environments.
by Keith T. Holcomb
Keith Holcomb is a retired USMC brigadier general whose commands included the 8th Marines and 2nd Light Armored Infantry Battalion. His last assignment was as the Director of Training and Education Division.
https://nationalinterest.org/feature/how-marines-can-fight-stifling-independent-thought-205154
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Military Times (militarytimes.com) 05/27/2022
Whose Marine Corps?
By Gen. Charles C. Krulak (retired)
Retired Marine Corps Gen. Charles C. Krulak served as 31st commandant of the Marine Corps. He is father of the Crucible, the three-block war, the strategic corporal, and the Marine Corps Warfighting Lab.
